Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa
South Africa: Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or was 0.5792 LPIA in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in LPIA.
Analysis
In 2024, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa stood at 0.5792 LPIA.
The figure is down 4.3% on the previous year and up 30.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa peaked at 0.605 LPIA in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.1709 LPIA, in 1970.
South Africa ranks 63rd of 103 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 18 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa, year by year
| Year | LPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 0.1709 LPIA | — |
| 2001 | 0.3779 LPIA | +121.2% |
| 2008 | 0.3993 LPIA | +5.7% |
| 2009 | 0.398 LPIA | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 0.4192 LPIA | +5.3% |
| 2011 | 0.4218 LPIA | +0.6% |
| 2013 | 0.4326 LPIA | +2.6% |
| 2014 | 0.4426 LPIA | +2.3% |
| 2015 | 0.501 LPIA | +13.2% |
| 2016 | 0.506 LPIA | +1.0% |
| 2017 | 0.5217 LPIA | +3.1% |
| 2018 | 0.5209 LPIA | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 0.535 LPIA | +2.7% |
| 2020 | 0.5985 LPIA | +11.9% |
| 2021 | 0.5619 LPIA | -6.1% |
| 2022 | 0.5744 LPIA | +2.2% |
| 2023 | 0.605 LPIA | +5.3% |
| 2024 | 0.5792 LPIA | -4.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.1709 LPIA | 0.1709 LPIA | 0.1709 LPIA | 1 |
| 2000s | 0.3917 LPIA | 0.3779 LPIA | 0.3993 LPIA | 3 |
| 2010s | 0.4779 LPIA | 0.4192 LPIA | 0.535 LPIA | 9 |
| 2020s | 0.5838 LPIA | 0.5619 LPIA | 0.605 LPIA | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 2.68 million (2023)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 2.97 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 818,404 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual 3.28 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 1.19 million (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) -2.55 % change on previous year (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 225,583 (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 61,727 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 748,573 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) -1.43 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa?
- Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in South Africa was 0.5792 LPIA in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.605 LPIA in 2023.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1709 LPIA in 1970.
- How does South Africa rank for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or?
- South Africa ranks 63rd out of 103 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 30.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or higher, population 25+ years, female, adjusted location parity index (LPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release